As crude oil hits record highs exceeding
$52 per barrel, scientists from Australia's University of New South Wales
claim that unlimited new energy is possible from the sun and water. They
also say this new revolutionary way of harnessing the power of the sun
from an abundant energy source, water, will be a reality within the next
seven years. These scientists state: "It would be the cheapest, cleanest
and most abundant energy source ever developed. The main by-products would
be oxygen and water.

"This is potentially huge, with a market
the size of all the existing markets for coal, oil and gas combined,
says Professor Janusz Nowotny who, with Professor Chris Sorrell, is leading
a solar hydrogen research project at the University's Centre for Materials
and Energy Conversion. Professor Sorrell's team is considered the most
advanced in developing light sensitive materials that are cheap and would
be the basis for the new technology: special titanium oxide ceramics which
would harvest the sunlight and split water to produce hydrogen fuel. Researchers
say a simple engineering process can be used to make a device with no
moving parts that harvests the energy which gives off no greenhouse gasses
or pollutants.

According to Professor Sorrell, Australia
is the country best suited to take advantage of the potential from this
new technology, We've abundant sunlight, huge re-serves of titanium.
But this technology could be used anywhere in the world. It's been the
dream of many people for a long time to develop it and it's exciting to
know that it is now within such close reach.

One of the most appealing aspects of
this new technology is cutting emissions like greenhouse gasses. Existing
hydrogen fuel cell technology is by far more efficient that the internal
combustion engine and does cut down vehicle emissions considerably, but
that hydrogen is produced from fossil fuel that does give off those greenhouse
gasses.

Scientists are busy in other countries
as well. A team of scientists at Leeds University in Great Britain have
developed what they call "an-other" process which enables the production
of hydrogen from vegetable oils. This would mean a future application
for automobiles which would have a tank of sun-flower oil, which in turn
converts into hydrogen that powers the fuel cell motor. In Scotland, the
Pelamis, the world's first commercial size floating Wave Energy Converter,
has now generated its first electricity for the UKs power grid.

Recently more than 350 bankers and
investors met in the United States to examine the progress being made
for renewable energy in America and obtaining financing for this critical
industry. The next The Annual Policy Conference of the American Council
On Renewable Energy (ACORE) will be held December 6-7, 2004 in Washington,
DC. (search).

scientists from Australia's University
of New South Wales claim that unlimited new energy is possible from the
sun and water. They also say this new revolutionary way of harnessing
the power of the sun from an abundant energy source, water, will be a
reality within the next seven years.